Job 15
1 And Eliphaz the Themanite, answered, and said:
Then answered Eliphaz the Themanite, and said,
2 Will a wise man answer as if he were speaking in the wind, and fill his stomach with burning heat?
Should a wise man utter windy knowledge, and fill his inward parts with the east wind?
3 Thou reprovest him by words, who is not equal to thee, and thou speakest that which is not good for thee.
Should he reason with a speech which availeth nothing? and with words in which there is no profit?
4 As much as is in thee, thou hast made void fear, and hast taken away prayers from before God.
Yea, thou truly makest void the fear [of God], and diminishest devotion before God.
5 For thy iniquity hath taught thy mouth, and thou imitatest the tongue of blasphemers.
For thy iniquity teacheth thy mouth, so that thou choosest the language of the crafty.
6 Thy own mouth shall condemn thee, and not I: and thy own lips shall answer thee.
Thy own mouth must condemn thee, but not I: yea, thy own lips will testify against thee.
7 Art thou the first man that was born, or wast thou made before the hills?
Wast thou born as the first man? or wast thou brought forth before the hills?
8 Hast thou heard God’s counsel, and shall his wisdom be inferior to thee?
Hast thou listened to the secret counsel of God? and is wisdom therefore of little esteem with thee?
9 What knowest thou that we are ignorant of? what dost thou understand that we know not?
What knowest thou, that we do not know? what understandest thou, which is not with us?
10 There are with us also aged and ancient men, much elder than thy fathers.
Both the grayheaded and the very aged are among us, — richer than thy father in days.
11 Is it a great matter that God should comfort thee? but thy wicked words hinder this.
Are the divine consolations too little for thee? and the word that was so mild with thee?
12 Why doth thy heart elevate thee, and why dost thou stare with thy eyes, as if they were thinking great things?
Whither doth thy heart carry thee away? and what do thy eyes gaze at?
13 Why doth thy spirit swell against God, to utter such words out of thy mouth?
That thou shouldst turn against God thy spirit, and utter [such] words out of thy mouth?
14 What is man that he should be without spot, and he that is born of a woman that he should appear just?
What is man, that he should be pure? and that he who is born of woman should be declared righteous?
15 Behold among his saints none is unchangeable, and the heavens are not pure in his sight.
Behold, in his holy ones he putteth no trust; and the heavens are not pure in his eyes:
16 How much more is man abominable, and unprofitable, who drinketh iniquity like water?
How much more then the abominable and corrupt, the man who drinketh like water wrong-doing?
17 I will shew thee, hear me: and I will tell thee what I have seen.
I will instruct thee, hear me; and what I have seen will I relate;
18 Wise men confess and hide not their fathers.
Which wise men have ever told, and have not concealed, as they obtained it from their fathers;
19 To whom alone the earth was given, and no stranger hath passed among them.
Unto whom alone the earth was given, and into whose midst no stranger ever entered.
20 The wicked man is proud all his days, and the number of the years of his tyranny is uncertain.
All his days is the wicked plagued with pain, and the number of years which are laid by for the tyrant.
21 The sound of dread is always in his ears: and when there is peace, he always suspecteth treason.
A sound of terrors is in his ears: during peace will the waster come over him.
22 He believeth not that he may return from darkness to light, looking round about for the sword on every side.
He believeth not that he shall return out of darkness, and he is looked for by the sword.
23 When he moveth himself to seek bread, he knoweth that the day of darkness is ready at his hand.
He wandereth abroad for bread, [saying, ] Where is it? he knoweth that there is ready at his hand the day of darkness.
24 Tribulation shall terrify him, and distress shall surround him, as a king that is prepared for the battle.
Distress and anguish terrify him: they assail him with might, as a king prepared for the battle.
25 For he hath stretched out his hand against God, and hath strengthened himself against the Almighty.
Because he had stretched out against God his hand, and strengthened himself against the Almighty;
26 He hath run against him with his neck raised up, and is armed with a fat neck.
[And] he had run against him, with an [extended] neck, with the thick roundings of his bucklers;
27 Fatness hath covered his face, and the fat hangeth down on his sides.
Because he had covered his face with his fat, and had made thick folds of fat on his flanks;
28 He hath dwelt in desolate cities, and in desert houses that are reduced into heaps.
And he dwelt in abandoned cities, in houses which none inhabited, which were destined to be ruinous heaps.
29 He shall not be enriched, neither shall his substance continue, neither shall he push his root in the earth.
[Yet] will he not remain rich, neither will his wealth endure, nor will he attain their perfection on earth.
30 He shall not depart out of darkness: the flame shall dry up his branches, and he shall be taken away by the breath of his own month.
He will never depart out of darkness: the flame shall dry up his shoots, and he will depart by the breath of God's mouth.
31 He shall not believe, being vainly deceived by error, that he may be redeemed with any price.
Let him that goeth astray not trust in vanity; for vanity will be what he obtaineth thereby.
32 Before his days be full he shall perish: and his hands shall wither away.
Even before his time will it be overfull, and his branches will not be green.
33 He shall be blasted as a vine when its grapes are in the first flower, and as an olive tree that casteth its flower.
He will shake off like the vine his unripe grapes, and cast off like the olive his blossoms.
34 For the congregation of the hypocrite is barren, and fire shall devour their tabernacles, who love to take bribes.
For the assembly of hypocrites will remain desolate, and fire will consume the tents of bribery.
35 He hath conceived sorrow, and hath brought forth iniquity, and his womb prepareth deceits.
They conceive trouble, and bring forth wrong-doing, and their body prepareth deceit.
